Trump has opposition on Mexico-tariff plan

Republicans in Senate expressing business concerns if levies take effect

US President Donald Trump is scheduled to end his trip to Europe on Friday and return to Washington where he will be faced with growing opposition from fellow Republicans to his threat to impose tariffs on Mexico.

On Wednesday, Vice-President Pence and other top administration officials met with Mexican Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard to discuss Mexico's efforts to curb illegal immigration to the US. The White House meeting was closed to the press.

Ebrard had tweeted on Tuesday: "It's do-able and desirable. (Chances are) 80/20 in favor of achieving one."

But Trump later said that officials were set to resume talks in Washington on Thursday, after "not enough" progress on curbing migration was made.

The president visited Ireland earlier on Wednesday and said, "Mexico, you know, wants to make a deal."

Trump wants Mexico to stem the flow of migrants from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, countries south of Mexico, who travel north and enter the US illegally in search of jobs. He has not said what steps Mexico must take or how quickly it must act to lift his threat of tariffs

In the Senate, the opposition from fellow Republicans has been growing since Trump announced last week that he will impose a 5 percent tariff on about $360 billion of Mexican imports starting on Monday. The tariffs would rise 5 points each month and reach 25 percent in October, making tariffs on Mexico larger than those imposed on China in an on-going trade dispute.

Mitch McConnell, the Senate Majority Leader from Kentucky, said: "There's not much support for tariffs in my conference. Our hope is that tariffs will be avoided."

Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson said the Senate could organize a large majority to reject tariffs even if Trump vetoed a resolution disapproving them. He said Republicans generally support Trump's effort to build a wall along the southern border to limit illegal immigration, but many oppose linking immigration policy to tariffs.

Opponents say tariffs are taxes and Johnson added, "Republicans don't like taxing American consumers and businesses." Trump carried Wisconsin in 2016 and the state is part of his 2020 re-election strategy.

Texas Senator Ted Cruz said imposing tariffs on Mexico could create unintended consequences.

"If the outcome of this game of chicken is massive new tariffs that destroy jobs in Texas and across America that would be a terrible outcome," he told reporters Wednesday. Trump carried Texas in 2016 and the state is vital to his re-election in 2020.

Senator John Kennedy from Louisiana said the proposed tariffs were a "mistake" that would "tank the US economy."

Mexico said it apprehended 23,600 migrants in May, more than double the number detained in the same month in 2018. It said that 20,500 people were caught heading to the US in April, 12,700 in March and 8,500 in January.

Senator Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, said the president was bluffing and would not impose tariffs on Mexico.

"President Trump has a habit of talking tough and then retreating. So, I wouldn't be surprised at all if President Trump doesn't follow through on these tariffs," Schumer said in a speech on Tuesday.

Trump responded in a tweet: "Can you imagine Cryin' Chuck Schumer saying out loud for all to hear, that I am bluffing with respect to putting Tariffs on Mexico. What a creep. He would rather have our Country fail with drugs & immigration than give Republicans a win. But he gave Mexico bad advice, no bluff."

Trump's tariff threat has baffled US business leaders because it follows the recently announced US-Mexico-Canada Agreement and would complicate its ratification in Congress. Business leaders said tariffs would boost consumer prices and disrupt supply chains.

Neil Bradley, chief policy officer for the US Chamber of Commerce, a lobbying organization in Washington, said in a statement: "Tariffs will be paid by American families and businesses without doing a thing to solve the very real problems at the border."

The National Retail Federation, a trade group in Washington, said tariffs will increase consumer prices.

The US auto industry would be hardest hit by the tariffs. Last year the US imported $60 billion in auto parts from Mexico. About 16 percent of parts in American-made cars are manufactured in Mexico.

About 2.6 million vehicles were imported from Mexico last year, almost double the number imported in 2011. The imports were valued at $93 billion and totaled about 15 percent of the 17.3 million vehicles sold in the US in 2018, the US Commerce Department reported.